Weft selector mechanism of a fluid jet loom

ABSTRACT

Herein disclosed is a novel weft selector mechanism in which wefts are inserted into a shed of warps by the aid of a stream of fluid spurting selectively from two or more fluid jet nozzles, the mechanism being adapted to prepare a cloth with any desired variegated weft pattern and comprising means operative to actuate the fluid jet nozzle in alternate cycles and means to vary the weft feeding cycles in accordance with signals which are carried on a pattern card arrangement to be representative of a desired weft pattern. The mechanism may further includes means adapted to measure and store the wefts to be supplied to the fluid jet nozzles, such means being actuated on the signals on the pattern card arrangement.

United States Patent 1191 Golobart 139/122 W Mizuno June 28, 1974 54] WEFT SELECTOR MECHANISM OF A 3,482,606 12/1969 Mizuno 'et al. 139/127 P 3,548,886 12/1970 Scherillo 139/122 W [75] FLUID Y E K T T k J 3,698,442 10/1972 sakamoto 139/127 P 12 Z I 1 or 0 9 yo FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [73] Assignee: Nissan Motor Company, Limited, 181 135 8/1966 U S S R 139/127 P Kanagawwku Japan [22] Filed: Oct. 13, 1972 Primary Examiner-James Kee Chi [21] Appl. No.: 297,334 I ABSTRACT 0 F A P D m Herein disclosed is anovel weft selector mechanism in 1 i ma Ion nor'l y a 46 80779 which wefts areinserted into a shed of warps by the 1 apan aid of a stream of fluid spurting selectively from two or more fluid jet nozzles, the mechanism being [22] adapted to prepare a cloth with any desired variegated d 122 W 123 weft pattern and comprising means operative to actul 0 care 5 126 R 1 ate the fluid jet nozzle in alternate cycles and means to vary the weft feeding cycles in accordance with signals which are carried on a pattern card arrangement [561' References cued to be representative of a desired weft pattern. The UNITED STATES PATENTS mechanism may further includes means adapted to 2,720,223 10/1955 Svaty 139/127 P measure and'store the wefts to be supplied to the fluid 3,024, 14 6 TB Strakm 139/ 127 P jet nozzles, such means being actuated on the signals 3,137,322 6/1964 Te Strake 139/127 P on the pattern card arrangement 3,233,634 2/1966 Kobayashi, 139/127 P 1/1967 3 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures III .32 I8 PATEr-HED ZL 3. 820.574

sum u or 4 y 4 TO RETAINER Hlf ILL

WEFT SELECTOR MECHANISM OF- A FLUID JET LOOM The present invention relates to looms and, more particularly, to a loom of the type in which wefts are inserted into a shed of warps by the aid of streams of fluid spurting from two or more fluid jet nozzles. The loom of the particular type will be herein referred to as a fluid jet loom.

A known fluid jet loom is operable to have a weft in-- serted into a shed of warps in alternate cycles or in alternate two or more cycles from two separate fluid jet nozzles for weaving a cloth with a desired weft pattern. Such a fluid jet loom is, however, inoperable for the purpose of having the weft inserted into the shed of the warps in cycles which are varied in accordance with the schedules prescribed to obtain a variegated weft pattem. A major bar to achieving this purpose is the intricacy of the construction and operation of the mechanism necessary to selectively feed the wefts to the shed of the warps in conformity to the given programs.

associated with the fluid jet nozzles and weft feeding means for reciprocatively driving the nozzles and weft feeding means so that the weft is ejected alternately or in sequence from the two or more nozzles as the rocking arm oscillates and accordingly the cam is turned intermittently. The control lever is operatively associated with the drive control means and is thus caused to dis- -An object of the present invention is, therefore, to

.toward the shed of thewarps, reciprocative drive means operative to reciprocatively drive the fluid jet nozzles and the weft feeding means for feeding the weft to the shed of the warps alternately or sequentially from the fluid jet nozzles, and drive control means carrying signals representative of a desired weft pattern and operative to make the reciprocative drive means inoperative in accordance with the weft pattern signals for thereby causingthe weft feeding means to feed the weft to selected one of the fluid jet nozzles in consecutive cycles until the reciprocative drive means is made operative by the drive. control means. The selective weft feeding means may comprise two or more weft retainers which are respectively associated with the fluid jet nozzles and a retainer actuating unit which is driven in synchronism with the weaving cycles of the loom. Each of the retainers is adapted to retain the weft to be fed to the associated fluid jet nozzle and, when actuated by the retaineractuating unit, allow the weft to be projected into the fluid jet nozzle. The drive control means to control the reciprocative drive means may include, in one preferred embodiment, a pattern card arrangement carrying the desired weft pattern signals detecting means adapted to detect the weft pattern signals on the patterncard arrangement, and releasing means coacting with the detecting means for cancelling the action of the reciprocative drive means on the weft feeding means in response to the signals detected by the detecting means. The reciprocative drive means for driving the weft feeding means may comprise a rocking arm which is driven to oscillate in synchronism with the weaving cycles of the loom, a control lever releasably engaging the rocking arm, a cam which is intermittently driven from the rocking arm through the control lever and a mechanical linkage acted upon by the cam and engage from the rocking arm in response to the weft pattern signals carried on the drive control means. Where the drive control means uses the pattern card arrangement as above mentioned, the control lever is acted upon by the releasing means of the drive control means and is uncoupled from the rocking arm when the detecting means responds to the weft pattern signals carried on the pattern card arrangement. When the control lever is in this manner disengaged from the rocking arm by the drive control means, the control lever andaccordingly the cam associated therewith are held at rest so that no driving effort is imparted to the fluid jet nozzles and the weft feeding means. Under this condition, the weft is passed to the shed of the warps solely from selected one of the nozzles'in consecutive cycles. The particular condition is terminated when the drive control means acts to bring the control lever of the drive means into engagement with the rocking arm in response to the weft pattern signals.

The wefts to be supplied to the weft feeding means should be preliminarily stored in the predetermined length in suitable weft measuring and storing means positioned anterior to the weft feeding means. Such weft measuring and storing means may comprise two or more sets of measuring and pressing rollers respectively associated with the fluid jet nozzles, and a weft shifting arrangement which is adapted to selectively feed the wefts to the sets of measuring andpressing rollers. The weft shifting arrangement may comprise in one preferred form two or more weft guides which are respectively associated with the sets of measuring and pressing rollers, reciprocative drive means operative to drive the weft guides for feeding the weft alternately or in a sequential manner to the sets of measuring and pressing rollers and drive control means carrying the weft pattern signals and operative to make the reciprocative drive means inoperative in accordance with the weft pattern signals for causing the weft guides to feed the weft to selected one of the sets of measuring and pressing rollers in consecutive cycles until the reciprocative drive means is made inoperative by the drive control means. The reciprocative drive means and the drive control means forming part of the weft shifting mechanism may be constructedessentially similarly to the counterparts of the weft selector mechanism above described. It is, in this important that, since the wefts should be measured and stored at timings which differ from the timings of inserting the weft into the shed of the warps, the reciprocative drive means and drive control means of the measuring and storing mechanism be driven in cycles which are out of phase with the operating cycles of the drive and control means of the weft selector mechanism.

The features and the outstanding advantages of the weft selector mechanism according to the present invention will become more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing partly in section a preferred embodiment of the weft selector mechanism according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing part of the weft selector mechanism shown in FIG. 1, the mechanism now being shown as being under a condition in which the drive control means is operative to hold the reciprocating drive means inoperative to drive the fluid jet nozzles and weft feeding means;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing an overall construction of the weft measuring and storing means for use in the weft selector mechanism according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side end view showing a preferred arrangement of the measuring and pressing rollers forming part of the weft measuring and storing means shown in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a front end view of the roller arrangement shown in FIG. 4.

Reference is now made to the drawings, first to FIG. 1 illustrating an overall construction of the weft selector mechanism embodying the present invention. As previously noted, the weft selector mechanism according to the present invention is incorporated in a fluid jet loom,,in which warps Y fed from a back rest roller (not shown) are shed by healds' for forming a shed S and a weft W entrained on a stream of fluid (which is usually water) is fed through the shed S of the warps. The weft W is then beated up by a reed 12 so that a cloth C is prepared. To feed the weft W into the shed S of the warps Y, a movable nozzle carrier 14 is positioned adjacent the shed S of the warps Y. The nozzle carrier 14 carries two separate fluid jet nozzles 16a and 16b and is movable back and forth on a suitable guide member 18 in a direction of arrow X viz., transversely to the direction in which the weft W is to be projected from the fluid jet nozzle 16a or 16b. It is, in this instance, to

be noted that, although the fluid jet nozzles are herein shown as two in number, such is merely by way of example and thus three or even more nozzles may be incorporated in the nozzle carrier 14 where desired. Jet fluid is supplied to the nozzles 16a and 16b through a fluid jet supply pipeline 20 leading from a suitable pumping unit (not shown). When the nozzle carrier 14 is moved on the guide member 18 and has one of its fluid jet nozzles 16a and 16b brought to a position A which is aligned with the shed S of the warps Y, then the weft W which has been inserted into the nozzle 16a or 16b is entrained on the stream of fluid from the pipeline 20 and projected into the shed S of the warps Y. In FIG. 1, the nozzle carrier 16 is shown as held in a position in which the fluid jet nozzle 16a is aligned with the position A, the nozzle carrier 16 thus being moved in the subsequent cycle to a position indicated by phantom lines in which the other fluid jet nozzle 16b is aligned with the position A. The general construction and operation of the fluid jet loom having the above described nozzle and fluid jet arrangement are apparent to those'skilled in the art and, as such, no further detailed description thereof will be herein incorporated.

The movement of the nozzle carrier 16 and the supply of the wefts W to the fluid jet nozzles 16a and 16b are controlled by the weft selector mechanism on which the present invention pivots. As previously discussed, the weft selector mechanism is largely made up of weft feeding means, reciprocative drive means and drive control means.

The weft feeding means, which is generally designated by reference numeral 22, is adapted to feed the weft W to the fluid jet nozzle 16a or 16b which is brought into alignment with the position A. The weft feeding means 22 thus includes, in the embodiment shown, a pair of weft retainers 24a and 24b which are associated with the fluid jet nozzles 16a and 16b, respectively. These weft retainers 24a and 24b are constructed in such a manner that each of them is capable of retaining the weft by, for example, a spring action when the associated fluid jet nozzle 16a or 16b is out of alignment with the position A and allowing a predetermined length of the weft to be fed into the associated nozzle when the nozzle is aligned with the position A. The construction of the means adapted tomeasure and temporarily detain the wefts to be supplied to the retainers 24a and 24b will be described later. The weft retainers 24a and 24b are selectively actuated to release the weft W by means of a retainer actuating unit which includes anintermittent motion cam 26 rotatable with a cam shaft 28 constantly driven in synchronism with the weaving cycles of the loom. The intermittent motion cam 26 has an enlarged cam lobe 26a and is driven for rotation in the direction of arrow in FIG. 1 as the shaft 28 rotates. The cam 26 is constantly in rolling engagement with a cam follower 30 carried on one arm portion of a bifurcated lever 32 which is pivotally mounted on a stationary shaft 34. The bifurcated lever 32 is urged to rotate clockwise of the drawing by suitable biasing means such as a tension spring 36 which is seated on a stationary member (not shown) of the loom so that the cam follower 30 is constantly pressed upon the cam 26. The other arm of the bifurcated lever 32 is pivotally connected as at 38 to a link element 40 which is selectively engageable with the weft retainers 24a and 24b. The link element 40 is moved back and forth in the direction of arrow X and thus presses the retainer-24a or 24b as the intermittent motion cam 26 rotates about the cam shaft 28 and accordingly the bifurcated lever 32 rocks about the shaft 32. In the construction herein shown, it is assumed that the link element 40 presses upon the retainer 24a or 24b when the cam 26 has an angular position to have its enlarged lobe portion 26a in rolling engagement with the cam follower 30 so that the bifurcated lever 32 is raised from the axis of rotation of the cam 26. The link element 40 is shifted between two positions indi cated by thick and phantom lines in FIG. 1 by the action of the reciprocative drive means which is generally designated by reference numeral 42.

The reciprocative drive means 42 is, in itself, operable to reciprocatively drive the nozzle carrier 14 and the link element 40 of the weft feeding means 22 for thereby feeding the weft W to the shed S of the warps Y alternately from the fluid jet nozzles 16a and 16b. For this purpose, the reciprocative drive means 42 includes a generally oval cam 44 having a large-diameter lobe portion 44a and a small-diameter lobe portion 44b merging from and into the large-diameter lobe portion 44a. The cam 44 is driven for rotation in the direction of arrow on and about a rotary cam shaft 46 which is constantly driven in synchronism with the weaving cycles of the loom, viz., fully turned per single cycle of the weft feeding operation. The cam 44 is in constant engagement with a cam follower 48 which is rotatably carried on an intermediate portion of a rocking arm 50. The rocking arm 50 is' rockable in the directions of arrow X about a fixed shaft 52 positioned at a spacing from the rotary shaft 46 of the cam 44 and is urged toward the cam 44 by suitable biasing means such as a tension spring 54 which is seated on a stationary memher (not shown) of the loom so that the cam follower 48 is constantly in rolling engagement with the cam 44. The rocking arm 50 has its portion remote from the fixed shaft 52 curved over the cam 44 and carries at its leading end portion a pin or boss 56.

A control lever 58 is positioned over the cam 44 and extends approximately perpendicularly to the rocking arm 50. The control lever 58 has formed at its end portion adjacent the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50 an abutment 58a'which is engageable with the pin 56 when the control lever 58 rests on the pin by reason of its own weight as illustrated in FIG. 1. The control lever 58 is thus moved leftwardly of the drawing, viz., in the direction of arrow X, through engagement between the abutment 58a and the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50 as the rocking arm 50 is turned counter clockwise of the drawing through engagement between the cam follower 48 and the large-diameter lobe portion 44a of the oval cam 44. The leftward movement of the control lever 58 is resisted by suitable biasing means such as a tension spring 60 which urges the control lever 58 rightwardly of the drawing, viz., in a direction in which is abutment 58a of the control lever is forced against the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50. The control lever 58 is releasable from the pin 56 when raised away from the cam 44 and accordingly fromthe pin 56 by a mechanism which will be described hereinafter.

The control lever 58 carries at its end portion remote from the abutment 58a a pivotal pin 62 on which an I a tension spring 82. The stop roller 76 is thus operative and 94 to three or more positions in accordance with the weft pattern signals by the intermittent motion of the cam as brought about by the rotation of the ratchet 68 in a fixed direction and through equal angles.

-A trifurcated lever 84 having angularly spaced arms 84a, 84b and 84c is rotatable on a shaft 86. The arm 84a carries at its end portion a cam follower 88' which is constantly in rolling engagement with the cam 70 by the action of a tension spring 90adapted to urge the arm 64 is rotatably mounted. The arm 64 has its leading end portion rotatably carried on a fixed shaft 66. This fixed shaft 66 further rotatably carries a ratchet wheel 68 and a three-lobed cam 70. The ratchet wheel 68 and the cam 70 are connected to each other by suitable fastening means such as screws 72 as shown and are thus rotatable together on and about the fixed shaft 66 counter clockwise of the drawing, viz., in the direction of arrow X The ratchetwheel 68 is engageable with a pawl member 74 which is rotatably carried on the pivotal pin 62 on the control lever 58.

In the construction herein shown, the cam 70 is as sumed to have three rounded projections 70a and three rounded recesses 70b merging from and into the adjacent rounded projections 70a. This, however, is merely byway of example and, therefore, the number of the lobes or rounded projections 70a may be selected as desired. The ratchet wheel 68, on the other hand, should be so configured as to have inclined teeth of a number corresponding to the sum of the numbers of the rounded projections and recesses 70a and 70b, respectively, of the cam 70. Thus, where the cam 70 is configured to have three lobes as illustrated, the ratchet wheel 68 should have a total of six teeth 68a.

. The ratchet wheel 68 has rounded recesses 68b formed between the adjacent teeth 68a. These rounded lever 84 to rotate for pressing the cam follower 88 against the cam 70. The arms 84b and 840 extend approximately in opposite directions across the shaft 86 and pivotally carry at their end portions link elements 92 and 94, respectively. The link element 92 thus pivotally connected at one end to the arm 84b of the lever 84 is connected at the other end to the nozzle carrier 14 for moving the nozzle carrier between the positions indicated by thick and phantom lines in FIG. 1 as the trifurcated lever 84 rocks about the shaft 86. The other link element 94 connected to the arm 840 of the lever 84 has its leading end pivotally connected to the link element 40 of the retainer actuating unit of the weft feeding means 22 previously described. The link element 40 of the retainer actuating unit is thus moved alternately between the positions which are indicated by thick and phantom lines as the trufurcated lever 84 rocks about the shaft 86.

As previously mentioned, the weft selector mechanism herein proposed operates on signals representative of the desired weft patterns. Such weft pattern signals are carried on and supplied from the drive control means which is operable on the reciprocative drive means 42 of the construction above described. The drive control means, generally designated by reference numeral 98, thus includes a pattern card arrangement which per se is well known in the art. The pattern card arrangement 100 comprises an endless chain of link elements 102 which are driven on a sprocket 104. The sprocket 104 is driven for rotation in the direction of arrow by and about a drive shaft 106 which is driven in synchronism with the weaving cycles of the loom, viz., fully turned per single weft feeding cycle. A plurality of pegs 108 are carried on those link elements 102 which are selected in accordance with the prescribed weft pattern.

Adjacent the pattern card arrangement 100 thus constructed is positioned a peg detecting lever in the form of a rocker 110 which is pivotally mounted on a'fixed shaft 112 and which is urged to turn clockwise of the drawing. The rocker 110 has one arm 110a extending adjacent the turning end of the chain of the link elements 102 and engageable by the action of the tension spring 114 with the peg 108 on the link element 102 when the peg passes through the turning end of the chain on the sprocket 104. Thus, in the presence of the peg 108 on the link element 102 at the turning end of the chain, the arm 110a is raised away from the sprocket 104 and consequently the rocker 110 is turned counter clockwise against the action of the tension spring 114. The other arm l10b of the rocker 110 is connected to or engages with a slider 116 which is longitudinally slidably received on stationary upper and lower bearings 118 and 120, respectively. The slider 116 thus substantially vertically extends from the arm 11% of the rocker 110 and carries at its top a pressing member 122 which is positioned adjacent the lower face of the control lever 58 of the reciprocative drive means 42. The slider 116 and the pressing member 122 are so designed that the pressing member 122 is moved downward and accordingly disengaged from the control lever 58 when the rocker 110 is turned clockwise of the drawing by the action of the tension spring 114 endless chain of the link elements and is moved upwardly as indicated by an arrowhead X for raising the control lever 58 out of engagement with the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50 when the rocker 110 is turned counter clockwise by the peg 108 passing through the turning end of the chain of the link elements 108 as illustrated in FIG. 1. Suitable stop means may be associated with the control lever 58 so as to limit the angle of clockwise rotation of the control lever about the pin 62 when the lever is raised by the pressing member 122.

When, in operation, the cam shaft 46 is driven to drive the cam 44v to rotate about the shaft 46, the rocking arm 50 is causedto oscillate in the directions of arrow X about the fixed shaft 52 in every weft feeding cycle. As the rocking arm 50 is caused to turn counter clockwise of the drawing, viz., away from the rotary shaft 46 by the large-diameter lobe portion 44a of the cam 44 against the action of the tension spring 54, the control lever 58 is moved leftwardly of the drawing, viz., in the direction of arrow X through engagement between the abutment 58a of the lever 58 and the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50 against the action of the tension spring 60. This causes the panel member 74 on the pivotal pin 62 to-rotate the ratchet wheel 68 and accordingly the cam 70 about the fixed shaft 66 through an angle corresponding to one tooth 68a of the ratchet wheel 68. As a consequence, the cam follower 88 engages the rounded projection 70a of the cam 70 so that the trifurcated lever 84 in its entirety is turned clockwise of the drawing, viz., raised from the axis of rotation of the cam 70 against the action of the tension spring 90. Under this condition, the link element 94 connected to the lower arm 840 of the lever 84 is moved leftwardly of the drawing, viz., toward the cam 70 so that the link element 40 of the retainer actuating unit is turned counter clockwise about the pivot 38 and -is thus shifted from the retainer 24a to the retainer 24b.

The weft which has been detained in the retainer 24b is consequently allowed to be passed to the associated fluid jet nozzle 16b. Simultaneously, the link element 92 connected to the upper arm 84b of the trifurcated lever 84 is moved rightwardly of the drawing, viz., away from the cam 70 so that the nozzle carrier 14 is moved to the position indicated by phantom lines in which the nozzle 16b associated with the retainer 24b now actuated is brought into alignment with the position A. The weft W in the fluid jet nozzle 16b is then projected into the shed S of the warps Y by the aid of the jet of the fluid supplied through the pipeline 20.

As the oval cam'44 is further driven to rotate about the shaft 46 and thus engages with the cam follower 48 at its small-diameter lobe portion 44b, the rocking arm 50 is turned clockwise of the drawing about the fixed shaft 52 by the action of the tension spring 54 and concurrently the control lever 58 bearing upon the pin 56 of the rocking arm 50 is moved rightwardly of the drawing by the action of the tension spring 60. The pawl member 74 on the pivotal pin 62 is now in engagement with the subsequent tooth 68a of the ratchet wheel 68 so that the ratchet wheel 68 and the threelobed cam 70 are held at rest by the aid of the stop-roller 76 with the cam follower 88 engaging with the rounded projection 70a of the cam 70.

When the oval cam 44 is driven for another turn about the shaft 46, then the rocking arm 50 rocks in the directions of arrow X so that the control lever 58 is moved again in the direction of arrow X and accordingly the pawl member 74 turns the ratchet wheel 68 through an angle corresponding to one tooth 68a of the ratchet wheel. This causes the cam 70 to turn about the fixed shaft 66 to an angular position in which the rounded recess 70b is in engagement with the cam follower 88. The trifurcated lever 84 is consequently turned counter clockwise of the drawing about the shaft 86 so that the upper and lower arms 84b and 840 and accordingly the associated link elements 92 and 94 are moved leftwardly and rightwardly of the drawing respectively. -The link element 40 of the retainer actuating unit is thus turned clockwise of the drawing about the pivot 38 and is shifted from the retainer 24b to the retainer 24a. The weft which has been detained in the retainer 24a is now permitted to be drawn into the associated fluid jet nozzle 16a. Simultaneously as these take place, the nozzle carrier 14 is moved leftwardly of the drawing, viz., away from the position indicated by phantom lines so that the nozzle 16a is brought into alignment with the position A. The weft W is now projected from the fluid jet nozzle 16a into the shed S of the warps Y as illustrated in FIG. 1.

The combination of the weft feeding means 22 and the reciprocative drive means 42 is thus adapted to feed the weft to the shed of the warps alternately from the two separate nozzles in regular cycles. Such regular cyclic operation will proceed in the presence of the peg 108 on the link element 102 at the turning end of the chain of the link elements in the pattern card arrangement of the drive control means 98.

In the absence of the peg 108 on the link element 102 passing through the turning end of the chain of the link elements on the sprocket 104, the rocker 110 is turned clockwise about the shaft 112 by the action of the ten sion spring 114 with the result that the slider 116 is moved upwardly through the bearings 118 and 120. This causes the pressing member 122 to raise the control lever 58 out of engagement with the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50 as illustrated in FIG. 2. Under this condition, the driving effort from the rocking arm 50 is isolated from the control lever 58 and, as a consequence, the ratchet wheel 68, cam 70, trifurcated lever 84 and link elements 92 and 94 are all held at rest regardless of the motions of the oval cam 44 and the associated rocking arm 50. The reciprocating movement of the nozzle carrier 14 and the rocking motion of the link element 40 of the retainer actuating unit are now interrupted so that the weft W is fed into the shed S of the warps Y consecutively from the fluid jet nozzle 16a or 16b which was selected in the preceding weft feeding cycle. When the peg 108 appears at the turning end of the action of the tension spring 114. The slider 116 is consequently lowered through the bearings 118 and 120 and the pressing member 122 is disengaged from the control lever 58. The control lever 58 thus restores the initial position and has its abutment 58a in engagement with the pin 56 on the rocking arm 50 with the result that the nozzle carrier 14 is for a second time moved back and forth on the guide 18 and the link element 40 of the retainer actuating unit rocks about the pivot 38.

Although the nozzle carrier 14 has been assumed as being of the movable type in the foregoing description, the embodiment of the weft selector mechanism above described is applicable to a nozzle carrier of the stationary type which also is in common use. In this instance, the link element 92 may be arranged in such a manner as to control a flow shifting valve to be incorporated in the fluid jet supply pipeline 20 leading to the fluid jet nozzles 16a and 16b.

The wefts to be supplied to the weft retainers 24a and 24b as previously mentioned should be preliminarily stored in a predetermined length in the weft measuring and storing means which is positioned anterior to the retainers, a preferred construction of such means being illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 5.

Referring to FIGS. 3 to 5, the weft measuring and storing means comprises measuring rollers 124a and 12412 driven for rotation on a common shaft 126 and pressing rollers 128a and l28b rotatable about shafts 130a and 130b, respectively, and adapted to roll on the associated measuring rollers 124a and 12412, respectively. One set of measuring and pressing rollers 124a and 128a, respectively, is associated with the weft retainer 24a (FIG. 1) while the other set of measuring and pressing rollers l24b and 128b is associated with the'weft retainer 24b (FIG. 1 The weft measuring and storing means further comprises a weft shifting arrangement which is adapted to selectively feed the wefts to the sets of measuring and pressing rollers in accordance with theprescribed schedules. The weft shifting arrangement includes two weft guide elements 132a and 1321) which are carried on a common bracket 134. One weft guide element 132a is associated with the set of measuring and pressing rollers 124a and 128a, respectively, .while the other weft guide element 132b is associated with the set of measuring and pressing rollers 1241b and 128b, respectively,'as best seen in FIG. 5. The bracket 134 is movable back and forth in a direction substantially parallel to the axes of rotation of the rollers as indicated by an arrow X in FIGS. 3 and so that the weft guide elements 1312a and 13% are selectively aligned with the associated sets of measuring and pressing rollers. Such reciprocative movement of the bracket 134 is brought about by a mechanism which is in essence similar to the mechanism illustrated in FIG. 1. Thus, the weft shifting arrangement further comprises reciprocative drive means 42' and drive control means 98 which are similar in construction to their counterparts in the mechanism illustrated in FIG. 1. The component parts and elements of these drive means 42 and drive control means 98 corresponding to those of the mechanism shown in FIG. 1 are therefore designated by like referecne numerals with primes in FIG. 3 and, as such, detailed description of the constructions and operations of these means may not be repeated.

The lever 84' supporting the cam follower 88 for the three-lobed cam has arms 84'a and 840 extending in approximately opposed directions across the fixed shaft 86' and carries the intermittent motions of the cam 70' over to the bracket 134 through a mechanical linkage which is designated generally by reference numeral 136. The mechanical linkage 136 comprises a link element 138 which is pivotally connected at one end to the lower arm 840 of the lever 84 and at the 1 other to a bifurcated lever 140. The bifurcated lever 140 is pivotally mounted on a fixed shaft 142 and has one arm pivotally connected to the link element 138 and the other arm pivotally connected to an end por tion of the bracket 134. Though not shown, a parallel link may be connected to the bifurcated lever 140 so that the guide elements 132a and l32b are moved substantially transversely to the direction of advancement of the wefts W as the lever 140 is turned about the pivot 142.

Since the weft feeding operations should be performed in cycles which are out of phase with the cycles of weft measuring operations, the weft measuring and storing means constructed as above described should be so arranged that the weft is measured and stored in cycles preceding the cycles in which the weft is fed to the shed of the warps from the selected fluid jet nozzle. It is, for this reason, important that the cams 44 and 70 of the reciprocative drive means 42' and the rocker of the drive control means 98' operate in cycles out of phase with their counterparts of the reciprocative drive means 42 and the drive control means 98 of the mechanism shown in FIG. I. When, thus, the cam follower 88' on the lever 84' is in engagement with the rounded projection of the three-lobed cam 70', then the lever 84 is turned clockwise of the drawing about the fixed shaft 86' so that the bracket 134 is raised through the mechanical linkage 136. The bracket 134 thus being moved upwardly of the drawing, the weft guide element 132a is aligned with the set of measuring and pressing rollers 124a and 128a, respectively, so that the weft W is passed between the measuring and pressing rollers 124a and 128a in a predetermined length. When, on the other hand, the lever 84 is in engagement at its rounded recess with the cam follower 88', then the lever 84 is turned counter clockwise of the drawing so that the bracket 134 is caused to move downwardly of the drawing. The weft guide element 132a is now brought out of alignment with the set of measuring and pressing rollers 124a and 128a and, in turn, the weft guide element 132b is aligned with the set of measuring and pressing rollers 124b and 128b, respectively, for measuring the weft W to be fed to weft retainer 24b.

The weft measured in this manner is temporarily stored before it is passed over to the retainer 24a or 24b in a weft storing unit which is positioned intermediate between the sets of rollers and retainers. The weft storing unit, shown in FIG. 4, includes a storage tube 144 having inlet and outlet pipes 146 and 148, respectively. The weft W entering the storage tube 144 through the inlet pipe 146 is drawn by suction air as indicated by arrows and delivered from the tube through the outlet pipe 148 toward the retainer 240 or 24!) (FIG. 1).

It will now be appreciated from the foregoing description that the weft selector mechanism according to the present invention is useful for preparing a cloth with any variegated weft patterns because not only the weft feeding operations but the weft measuring and shifting operations are performed in desired cycles in accordance with the prescribed schedules. The embodiment of the mechanism herein described is solely for the purpose of illustration and, as such, various modifications and variations of such embodiment may be carried out where desired. Thus, the mechanism according to the present invention may be so arranged as to be capable of dealing with any desired number of wefts and in any desired operation cycles through modification of the fluid jet nozzle arrangement and various cam arrangements and mechanical linkages. To simplify the overall construction of the weft shifting arrangement shown in FIG. 3, the shafts supporting the individual rotary elements thereof may be common to those for the counterparts of the rotary elements of the weft shifting mechanism shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

What is claimed is:

1. In a loom adapted to insert wefts into a shed of warps selectively from at least two fluid jet nozzles, a weft selecting mechanism comprising a first cam rotated by drive means of said loom, a rocker arm pivotally mounted on said loom and connected with said first cam for swinging thereby, a second cam rotatably mounted on said loom, a control lever detachably connected at one end thereof with said rocker arm for reciprocating movement thereby and operatively connected at the other end with said second cam for causing rotation thereof, a second lever pivotally mounted on said loom and having a first arm connected with said second cam for causing turning of said second lever and a second arm connected with said nozzles for causing reciprocating movement thereof, said second lever, when turned, moving said nozzles in regular sequence into an emitting position in which a weft is emitted from the corresponding nozzle into said shed of warps, a slider positioned relative to said control lever for actuation to cause release thereof from said rocker arm, a pattern card arrangement rotated by drive means of said loom and having a circumference having a configuration representative of a weft pattern, and a rocker pivotally mounted on said loom and having a first arm operatively connected with said slider and a second arm connected with said circumference of said pattern card arrangement for causing turning of said rocker to cause actuation of said slider in accordance with said configuration of said circumference.

2. A weft selecting mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a retainer actuating unit for actuating at least two weft retainers of said loom to release the wefts from said weft retainers, in which said second lever further includes a third arm connected with said retainer actuating unit for operating same, said second lever, when turned, putting said retainer actuating unit into positions for actuating the weft retainers corresponding respectively to said nozzles when said nozzles are in said emitting position.

3. A weft selecting mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising weft shifting means for shifting the wefts selectively into positions in which the wefts engage the corresponding measuring rollers of said loom, said weft shifting means including a first cam which is rotatable by the drive means of said loom, driving means connected to said first cam for operation thereby, first driven means including a second cam mounted on a fixed shaft secured to said loom, control means connected to said driving means for operation thereby and operatively connected to said first driven means for causing rotation of said second cam, second driven means connected to said second cam for operation thereby and operatively connected to said nozzles, said second driven means, when operated, moving the wefts to be fed to said nozzles in regular sequence into positions in which the wefts engage the corresponding measuring rollers, said control means being releasable from one of said driving means and said first driven means to render said first and second driven means inoperative thereby keeping one of the wefts engaged with the corresponding measuring roller and releasing means positioned relative to said control means and actuating same to release said control means from said one of said driving means and said driven means in accordance with a weft pattern. 

1. In a loom adapted to insert wefts into a shed of warps selectively from at least two fluid jet nozzles, a weft selecting mechanism comprising a first cam rotated by drive means of said loom, a rocker arm pivotally mounted on said loom and connected with said first cam for swinging thereby, a second cam rotatably mounted on said loom, a control lever detachably connected at one end thereof with said rocker arm for reciprocating movement thereby and operatively connected at the other end with said second cam for causing rotation thereof, a second lever pivotally mounted on said loom and having a first arm connected with said second cam for causing turning of said second lever and a second arm connected with said nozzles for causing reciprocating movement thereof, said second lever, when turned, moving said nozzles in regular sequence into an emitting position in which a weft is emitted from the corresponding nozzle into said shed of warps, a slider positioned relative to said control lever for actuation to cause release thereof from said rocker arm, a pattern card arrangement rotated by drive means of said loom and having a circumference having a configuration representative of a weft pattern, and a rocker pivotally mounted on said loom and having a first arm operatively connected with said slider and a second arm connected with said circumference of said pattern card arrangement for causing turning of said roCker to cause actuation of said slider in accordance with said configuration of said circumference.
 2. A weft selecting mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a retainer actuating unit for actuating at least two weft retainers of said loom to release the wefts from said weft retainers, in which said second lever further includes a third arm connected with said retainer actuating unit for operating same, said second lever, when turned, putting said retainer actuating unit into positions for actuating the weft retainers corresponding respectively to said nozzles when said nozzles are in said emitting position.
 3. A weft selecting mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising weft shifting means for shifting the wefts selectively into positions in which the wefts engage the corresponding measuring rollers of said loom, said weft shifting means including a first cam which is rotatable by the drive means of said loom, driving means connected to said first cam for operation thereby, first driven means including a second cam mounted on a fixed shaft secured to said loom, control means connected to said driving means for operation thereby and operatively connected to said first driven means for causing rotation of said second cam, second driven means connected to said second cam for operation thereby and operatively connected to said nozzles, said second driven means, when operated, moving the wefts to be fed to said nozzles in regular sequence into positions in which the wefts engage the corresponding measuring rollers, said control means being releasable from one of said driving means and said first driven means to render said first and second driven means inoperative thereby keeping one of the wefts engaged with the corresponding measuring roller and releasing means positioned relative to said control means and actuating same to release said control means from said one of said driving means and said driven means in accordance with a weft pattern. 